Copyright & Fair Use

Copyright and Fair Use are important issues in research, publishing, and teaching. The purpose of Copyright is to foster the progress of science, the creation of culture, and the sharing of ideas. Its best-known feature is protection of owners’ rights. But copying, quoting, and generally reusing existing cultural and scientific material can be a critically important part of generating new research and culture and promoting intellectual exchange. This is where Fair Use comes into play, which is a set of flexible guidelines for the legitimate uses of copyrighted materials, whether as transformative for art, or for teaching purposes in the classroom.

Questions researchers tend to have about Copyright and Fair Use often relate to whether they can use something without permission, what they themselves own, and how they can obtain permission from copyright holders. Follow the links below for more information on these issues.